Period
by Despaired Poet
Summary: Sakura is visited by her Mr. Monthly Visitor. While laying around in agony she gets a surprise visit by an old friend, Shikamaru. Read and Enjoy.


Disclaimer: I don't own anything dealing with Naruto. And I'm sorry if this isn't fitted to your view of the characters, this is my first Naruto fanfic. Hopefully, I'll get better and this actually wasn't supposed to go on for this long. It was supposed to be short, sweet and funny. And my ending is a little clichéd, sorry in advance but it's the best I could do. Read and Enjoy.

"Ugh," Sakura groaned, curling into a fetal position on her bed. The covers had been kicked to the foot of the bed and she was still in her night clothes. The sun streamed in through the window onto the bed keep her warm. Pressing her hands to her stomach she groaned in pain. "I hate this!" Reaching over her head she pulled her pillow down, so it covered her face. "I hate periods!"

She knew it was coming; it always came the same week of every month ever since she'd first gotten her period. Now some ten years later, at 23, she still felt crippled by the cramps. Hell she'd rather be put through grueling training then have to deal with this every month. Sighing, she knew she'd have to get up eventually to get a heating pad. Lucky for her she didn't have anything to do today, which meant she could wallow in bed all day. Getting out of the middle of her bed, she walked down the hall and opened the hall closet, taking out the heating pad that would feel like heaven on her cramps and went back into her bedroom. Once the heating pad was situated she lay back down and sighed as the heat started taking effect.

"No if only there was something for my back," she whined, stuffing her face into her pillow.

Shikamaru walked down the street with his hands in his pockets and shoulders hunched. This was not how he wanted to start off the weekend. He'd been planning on a little cloud gazing and then talk Neji into another game of Shgoi. They'd been interrupted yesterday and he'd wanted to finish what they'd started. Instead he was walking towards Sakura's apartment with a message from Tsunade. "This is all too troublesome," he muttered, turning left and kept walking. His fingers, in his pocket, fiddled with the paper message. "Must be something important," he muttered. Lifting his head from its bowed position he looked around. "How troublesome, I took a wrong turn."

Sighing, Shikamaru turned around and retraced his steps. Eventually, Shikamaru found his way to Sakura's small apartment and knocked on the door. He stood outside, leaning against the balcony railing as he waited. Not hearing anyone moving inside he knocked again on the door. He frowned, he was not looking forward to searching the whole village for Sakura, and she could be anywhere. He was about to walk back down the stairs when he heard it. It was coming from inside and it sounded like…..like a groan of pain!

Many scenarios passed through his mind, mostly of her being hurt, someone attacking her when she'd been at home. What if the attacker was still in the apartment? He didn't waste any time of thinking up a plan, opening the door carefully he sneak into the apartment. He carefully and quietly checked every room of the small apartment before reaching the sound of the groaning. Pushing the door open quietly, he burst through the door checking the room for intruders. The only person he saw was Sakura, lying face down on her bed in a tank top and her underwear.

"Shikamaru?" she asked, looking up in a stupor. Then she realized he was in her room, while she was barely clothes. "What the hell is wrong with you?! You don't just come barging into a girl's room no less a person's house uninvited! Get you!" She threw her pillow at him and reached for her covers to cover herself up.

Shikamaru easily dodged the pillow thankful that she didn't have anything else heavy on hand. "I heard noises and I thought you'd been attacked or were in pain," he said in explanation as he eyed her over, hoping for another look at her panties. So sue him he was a guy.

"I am in pain, you moron," she groused, barring her face into her covers. Could this day get any better? "That doesn't mean I was attacked."

"It's a logical reaction," he retorted, now leaning against her wall.

"Okay, whatever. Care to explain why you were lurking around my house?" she asked, pushing herself up onto her elbows so she could twist her back. The idea was to pop her back so it'd relieve some of the pressure. Too bad it didn't work.

"Why would I be lurking around a house that would be –"

"Troublesome," she finished for him in turn making him frown as he watched her wiggle around on her bed.

"What are you doing?" he asked irritated.

Sakura sighed in frustration. "My lower back is killing me. I'm trying to relieve some of the pain – wait what are you…oh, that feels like heaven." Shikamaru was now sitting on the side of her bed messaging her back. Sighing in pleasure Sakura dropped her face back on the covers and almost drooled from shear ecstasy of his hands. _Magical hands,_ she thought.

"Better?"

"Much," she responded. "But I can't help but wonder why you're putting yourself through the trouble of doing this."

"Because watching you fidget is killing me." _In more ways then one,_ he thought glancing down at his now snug pants. _And I wanted to touch you._

"Right," she drawled out not really caring, she was getting what she wanted.

"Mind telling me what is ailing you?" he asked, his fingers tracing light patterns on her lower back, before digging into the skin and easing the tense muscles. "I could go find Tsunade if you'd like."

Sakura's face went red. "No….no, I'm not sick. I…uh…it's just a minor problem." What was she supposed to say? It's not like she wanted to admit to him that a simple period could confine her to her bed in agony. Okay, so not that drastic but still…. she wasn't about to embarrass herself in front of Shikamaru, whom she was beginning to love even more as his hands worked miracles.

Who was she kidding, she'd watched him grow up and when she was little she might have had a crush on him for a few days but then Sasuke had taken over her over active teenage mind. He'd been one of the few people who hadn't picked on her. Now….she was starting to review her thoughts and feeling on Shikamaru, only she realized that hadn't actually disappeared just pushed aside.

"It's your period isn't it?" he asked with a dry tone.

"How?" she squeaked.

"I've known Ino since we were kids and I was teamed with her for teen years," Shikamaru answered. "She used to complain very vocally about it all the time, you never did."

"Did you ah, ever message her back like this?"

"No."

"Then why are you helping me?" she asked, lifting her head to look at him. "And you can stop now; I fee much better, thanks."

Shikamaru reluctantly moved his hands off her back, but didn't move from the bed. "Welcome," he answered as he leaned back, lying face up on the bed beside her with his arms behind his head. Sakura's eyebrow rose, what was he doing?

"Shikamaru?" she asked hesitantly, then shook her head. She'd never understand him.

"Laying here is just as good as near the tree," he replied with a far off look on his face. Sakura blushed, gezz she hadn't blushed this much since being in the academy. She watched him for a few minutes, laid her cheek on her arms, facing him.

"How's your stomach?"

"What? Oh, it's fine," she replied, smiling. "Why were you offering to message that too?"

"If you asked," he replied with a grin.

_Whoa,_ she thought blindside by his reply. _Did he just….is he flirting with me!?_ "Yeah…"

Shikamaru went back to staring at the ceiling. He could feel her watching him and was tempted to kiss her to see what she'd do. This attraction wasn't something that was overbearing or spontaneous it was comfortable. Almost the feeling he got when he was around Ino, but he never felt like exploring sexual situations with Ino. He suppressed a mental image that went along with the thought.

"Shikamaru," Sakura said, and when he turned to look at her; she kissed him. His eyes slide shut and before he could get his hands from out underneath him she'd pulled back. Opening his eyes, she was smiling shyly at him with a pink tint to her cheeks. The sun was filling in from the window behind her and she looked good, damn good. "Thanks for being nice."

"Not a problem," he responded, smiling. "If I came back with chocolate what would that get me?"

"I slap in the face," she retorted dryly but started laughing.

Shikamaru chuckled, and inched closer on the bed to her. His shoulder bumped up against hers, as well as his hips. "How long do you plan on lying here?" he asked.

"I don't know, I'm pretty comfortable, although I think I can go without the heating pad, the worst is over." Lifting up on her elbows she removed the heating pad, turned it off and let it fall from the bed. "How long do you plan on staying?"

"Till dinner, you should feed me since I delivered your message."

Sakura looked at him with confusion in her eyes. "Shikamaru, I didn't give you any message…."

"Oh, that's right," he muttered, his fingers digging into her pocket and pulling out a white envelope. "Tsunade wanted me to give this to you."

Sakura took envelop from him and looked at the seal, sure enough it was Tsunade. "Why didn't you give me this earlier?" she practically screamed at him and tore open the envelope. Shikamaru cringed and rubbed his ear.

Sakura was too busy reading the contents. If this had been a mission, why hadn't Shikamaru said something sooner? _Great,_ she thought, going back to the missive.

Sakura,

I've you've been my student for some time and I tired to push this in your direction but you still haven't seemed to taken advantage of it. This is a special jutsu that will help with your cramps.

-Tsunade.

"That's it?" Sakura asked, frowning. "Of all the nerve!" Sakura looked over at Shikamaru who was still rubbing his ear. "Sorry, Shikamaru, you've seemed to have wasted your time today, along with me."

"I wouldn't call it a waste of time," he said glancing over at her, his forehead almost touching hers.

"No, I guess not," she giggled, moving her head to lie in the crook of his shoulder. "Shikamaru?"

"Humm?"

Sakura snuggled closer to him. "I'm glad you came over."

"Me too," he replied, his right arm sneaking out to wrap around her waist and pull her closer. This had been a _lot_ better then playing Shogi with Neji. It was a new beginning.


End file.
